Archive for August 2013

Fresh from their successful run at the Directors’ Fortnight section of this year’s Cannes Film Festival last May, Erik Matti’s crime thriller finally find its way into Philippine theaters, as Star Cinema and Reality Entertainment release OTJ (On the Job) which stars Piolo Pascual, Gerald Anderson, Joel Torre, and Joey Marquez among others.

Inspired by true events, the film gives an extensive depiction of how some jailed members were being released from prison every now and then as they’re assigned with the task of killing people under orders from the wealthy and influential. In the film, the specific gunmen happens to be Tatang (Joel Torre) and his protege Daniel (Gerald Anderson) who is being groomed to be his replacement once he retires. Tatang takes and trains Daniel under his wing as they do their assignments. On the flipside, there’s NBI official Francis Coronel, Jr. (Piolo Pascual) who was tasked to take over these said cases, as well as police office Acosta (Joey Marquez). Once their paths crossed provides conflict in the film.

There’s a lot of great things to say about this, but If there’s a clear standout in it, no doubt it is Erik Matti. His slick direction is the main core which holds the film together and gives it the necessary oomph. I like how he weaves these scenes and events seamlessly which makes for an intense and thrilling ride. The rest of the technical achievements were on point as well, with Richard Somes’ production design and Francis Buhay III’s cinematography portraying Manila in a very artistic and sensible manner, that of a series of tasteful photographs that’s well done.

The story and pacing smoothly complimented each other. I like how the intensity just builds up right from the get go during the first scene up until the last one. The chase and fight scenes were tastefully pulled off. It’s also great to see characters that were fleshed out especially that of the three main characters. We get to know them more instead of simply just following what they do. This is one of the things I like about the film in terms of characterization, we get a glimpse of their individual lives as opposed to just going right at the center of the conflict.

This film pretty much shows what an ensemble really is. There are really no small roles here, as everyone’s given something to do and they all did their parts well. Gerald Anderson’s greatest acting achievement prior to this is a television stint as mentally challenged Budoy, but this character suits him like a glove and challenges his acting chops for the better. It’s nothing new to claim that Joel Torre is a great actor, but this will probably end up as one of his most memorable turns in his discography. Piolo Pascual is the good guy of course, so this isn’t much of a stretch for him, but it’s great to see that he wasn’t phoning it in. But, I like how Erik Matti brings out the best in Joey Marquez. He already gave us a glimpse of it in last year’s Tiktik, but this was more prevalent in here. Special props to Vivian Velez’ kick ass role.

Given everything that’s actually happening in the country right now, one can somehow juxtapose this with the events in the film too. This will probably make the experience more insightful for others in terms of understanding the events or the aftermath of it. Films that make a statement is a hit or miss for me, but I like that this one doesn’t spoonfeed it to the audience.

I would have loved to see the version that was shown at Cannes since I’ve learned that it was slightly different from what was shown here. Nevertheless, On the Job is such a breath of fresh air in terms of current Philippine cinema effectively combining style and substance in a savvy manner. I might as well say it’s one (if not the) movie event of the year.

After the movie miniseries and the reality/competition ones, let’s move to the guest acting categories for this year’s Primetime Emmy Awards. As you may know, the Guest Acting categories are being given a week before the actual ceremonies at the Creative Emmy Awards alongside the other technical category winners. Let’s begin with Guest Actress in a Drama Series, where in the biggest shock was the snub for Shirley Maclaine in Downton Abbey. The moment her casting was announced, a nomination was already predicted despite the end result of her guesting, but it’s sad that this once perennial nominee can’t even snatch an Emmy nod for a huge TV stint like this. Anyway…

Linda Cardellini is Mad Men‘s representative in this category for this year after unlucky tries made by previous nominees Cara Buono, Randee Heller, and Julia Ormond. In her submission Man of a Plan, Sylvia decided to once and for all make some huge steps towards her relationship with Don as his mistress. The good thing about this episode is that it’s a full circle act which gives her character some closure. But do you think this is the first acting performance that can snoop up an acting Emmy from the show? Your guess is just as good as mine.

Joan Cusack is back for her third consecutive bid for Shameless. Isn’t it amazing that she continues to be the only thing the Emmys recognize from this show? And how is she even a guest star when she appears all through the season (well I know. It’s probably stipulated in her contract in the same way other “guest stars” are in their shows like Robert Morse in Mad Men). As for Cusack, this is probably her best submission yet (A Long Way From Home) in the last three years as she deals with the giving up of her granddaughter which provides the drama while Jody introducing her to kinky sex provides the comedic part. I have predicted her once, and while I don’t think she’s winning this year, I won’t be surprised if she actually does.

Respected veteran Jane Fonda picks up an Emmy nod that can go along her two Oscars for her turn in The Newsroom. Aside from the snubbed Maclaine, this is the most buzzed guest acting stint in this category this season, and that gives her the most buzz among the other contenders. Watching her episode The 112th Congress can be quite a chore since most of her scenes appear in the near end of the episode. However, she benefits from the trimmed down episode system of this category as all of her scenes were made to gain awards traction and makes her a viable winner.

After her very deserving win two years ago for Justified, Margo Martindale is back for Emmy contention, this time for her role as Claudia in The Americans. Like Cusack, it’s probably stipulated in her contract that she is a guest star seeing she appeared in majority of the season’s episodes. In her submitted episode The Colonel which was also the show’s season finale, she gets revenge on the person who she thinks is responsible for someone else’s death. This includes her in a physical transformation in one of her scenes. This might not be the best tape of the bunch, but it gives her enough to work on, and I wouldn’t count her out for the win.

Among the plethora of The Good Wife actresses eligible this season, it is Mrs. Michael Emerson a.k.a Carrie Preston who gets to represent the show in this category. As attorney Elsbeth Tascioni, the actress submitted Je Ne Sais What? where in her character was arrested before the hearing of her client. Preson’s unique and quirky attention easily gets your attention and this episode gives her quite a work on and a grasp of how her character works. During the past three years of The Good Wife, there’s always an actress who wins for the show, and Preston can be its fourth consecutive win this year.

Lastly, there’s Dame Diana Rigg from Game of Thrones. Rigg is a past Emmy winner who already has reaped multiple nominations in the 70s and 80s. Somewhat a forum favorite, matriarch Olenna Tyrell goes on and does everything she can to protect and preserve her family’s interest. It’s not a very showy performance, but Dame Rigg’s presence was definitely felt throughout her scenes And Now His Watch Has Ended. However, a stint like hers benefits more from the old guest acting rules instead of a tape submission.

Despite this, it’s really hard to come up with a prediction in this category. The only one I can eliminate is Linda Cardellini, and I can see a winning scenario for the rest of them. However, with her stature and her tape (that benefits from the editing), I’d put Jane Fonda as my predicted winner on who’ll end up with the Emmy in this category. Runner up position foes to Carrie Preston in a scene stealing and likable performance in The Good Wife.

Let’s now move on to one of my favorite Emmy categories: Reality/Competition show. Since its inception in 2003, only two shows have won this award: The Amazing Race and Top Chef. As much as how stagnant the winners circle is, they have been more receptive to giving nominations to new shows though previous nominee Survivor can’t catch a break despite a well buzzed season while former perennial nominee American Idol keeps on fading to obscurity. Anyway let’s begin the discussion.

For the second year, two dancing shows are up for the award. It’s unfortunate though that these two dancing shows are the two longest episodes this year. Dancing with the Stars had their prom episode as their submission. It’s glitz, glamour, and fun with a lot of dance spectacles such as that leading one by Derek and Kellie. However, submitting their second live show episodes doesn’t help them much as it simply went on and on and on and on. On the other hand, submitting the finale episode didn’t work for So You Think You Can Danceas well, as there’s not much competition that happened since it’s just an exhibition of their best performances all season. There’s an Emmy shoutout though, from Nigel Lythgoe, and maybe that’s a wink to these Emmy voters.

Top Chefsubmitted the top three episode where in they went to Alaska. It was a heart tugging extended episode where the challenge involved cooking a dish that inspired them to be the chefs they were. It also added the reality factor when Joshua, one of the remaining contestants, is anxious since her wife who’s on the other side of America is going into labor. It’s a pretty intense episode that can charm votes from Emmy people.

Intense can also be applied to the Project Runway episode since it started with the aftermath of a contestant who voluntarily left the contest followed by another one who wants to do the same. This led to the comeback of an eliminated contestant already. The challenge for this episode is about a casual wear for a busy woman who’s flaw free day and night and has Hayden Panettiere as its guest judge.

Current winner The Amazing Race submitted its second Botswana episode with some very intense tasks such as the diving in a crocodile swamped lake, delivering goats on the said lake, and guiding two donkeys with a carrot among other things. It also added extra drama when teams were stopped by police due to overspeeding, a team getting lost, and the elimination results too. While I think it’s not the season’s best episode, it’s pretty much a jam packed episode that for sure will be competitive,

And lastly there’s The Voice.They submitted the first Blind Auditions for the fourth season which featured new coaches Shakira and Usher. With two eligible seasons this year, it is wise of The Voiceteam to go with their most buzzed parts of the contest: the Blind Auditions. It also added the fresh faces of two more Grammy winning artists, and it featured the audition piece of the season’s eventual winner. Being the newest member of this category, it also is the most buzzed show in this group which can help.

All in all, I don’t know if there will be changes here, but it will probably be an easy win for The AmazingRaceagain. The only one I can see them going for as an alternate is The Voice but for the most part, it will add another trophy to the Amazing Race’s Emmy streak.

The 2013 MTV Video Music Awards is just right around the corner, and this one is shaping up to be a good one for MTV’s biggest night. Now celebrating it’s 30th year of the awards ceremonies, appearances and performances by the likes of Katy Perry, One Direction, Miley Cyrus, Bruno Mars, and Robin Thicke to name a few. Also, aside from leading up the nominations this year, Justin Timberlake is this year’s recipient of the Video Vanguard award, and a rumored N*SYNC reunion performance is in the books this year. I know you’re excited for Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick. Anyway, here are my predictions on the major categories on who will end up with moonmen on Sunday’s ceremony:

WHO WILL WIN: Between the Video Vanguard award, the rumored N*SYNC performance, and his huge comeback this year, MTV is setting this up to be JT’s big night, and it won’t be complete if he doesn’t end up with the highest honor for that night. Plus, he still hasn’t won here yet, and it’s a great video to represent him here.RUNNER UP: Taylor Swift. This is still a fan-voted format and Taylor is campaigning the hell for a win this year. Besides, the last six winners here are solo female popstars and Swift fits that bill.MY CHOICE: JT. Probably the one that stands out the most, thought that’s not saying a lot.

WHO WILL WIN:JT easily. It will be one of those sweep wins for his big night. This win will also put him on a tie with Eminem as the most rewarded act in the history of this category with three wins apiece.RUNNER UP: Robin Thicke. Turning out to be the song of the year by far, they can easily throw him a bone here.MY CHOICE: Ed Sheeran. Let’s throw him a vote come on guys. 🙂

WHO WILL WIN:Taylor Swift. It will probably be an easy win for Taylor as she’s sure to end up with a moonman on Sunday. The only scenario I see that lets her lose here is if she wins Video of the Year inside.RUNNER UP: Miley Cyrus. This song is peaking at the right time, and her legion of fans will propel this to a win.MY CHOICE: Rihanna. Probably the best video in this bunch. Simple and effective.

WHO WILL WIN:Austin Mahone. Catering the left over conservative Bieber fanbase and opening for Taylor Swift can propel him to a win here.RUNNER UP: Zedd. Clarity is the biggest hit in this group and he can benefit from that.MY CHOICE: Maybe Zedd. But where’s Macklemore and Ryan Lewis here? This would have been an easy win for them.

WHO WILL WIN:Miley Cyrus. I think she has better chance here than in Female since her fans are the most active among this bunch unless…RUNNER UP: this is still part of the Timberlake sweep so he can easily take this one too.MY CHOICE: fun I guess. I’m not a fan of most of the videos here.

WHO WILL WIN:No idea, but the combo of recent rise to popdom and being the most recent here, I’m thinking Imagine Dragons.RUNNER UP: Jared Leto is on the show as a presenter, so that’s one assured nominee who’ll show up so maybe 30 Seconds to Mars?MY CHOICE: Vampire Weekend probably since they’re the ones I like the most in this group.

WHO WILL WIN:As a result of their good breakout year and as the other most nominated act (aside from Justin that is), this is Macklemore and Ryan Lewis to lose.RUNNER UP: Probably Drake since he’s still 0 in terms of VMA wins.MY CHOICE: Can’t Hold Us is one of my favorite jams this year.

WHO WILL WIN:With the VMAs being held in Jay Z’s place this year, there’s no better way to give back to Jay than by giving him the moonman adding up to JT’s domination on Sunday, so I say Suit and Tie wins.RUNNER UP: Blurred Lines since it’s the biggest hit in this line up.MY CHOICE: I’d probably throw Pink and Nate a bone here and give them my vote.

WHO WILL WIN:An easy win for Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. Plus, it talks about a hot topic that’s really rampant right now.RUNNER UP: Beyonce just to make this more ridiculous as she wins for a live video. Oh and remember we’re in Brooklyn.MY CHOICE: Same Love is the best song here and the only one deserving of a win.

WHO WILL WIN:Two words: BLURRED LINES.RUNNER UP: Maybe Miley comes closest to Blurred Lines here. Though she’s far and away a distant runner up.MY CHOICE: Daft Punk and VMA only happens once in a blue moon, so why not grab the chance to vote for it?

There you have it! Are you excited for the 30th VMAs? Don’t forget to watch the show on Sunday!

And here’s the final cap on the longform acting categories: the coveted Best Actress category. The last three years have been easy wins that’s why it’s quite fun that we have some sort of a competition this year. But first, let’s give a moment to recognize those who were snubbed. Despite scoring in two other acting nods, Golden Globe nominee Sienna Miller was snubbed for her work in The Girl, as well as Rebecca Hall in Parade’s End. HBO wasn’t powerful enough to put the pair of Oscar nominated (and winning) actresses in Mary and Martha (Brenda Blethyn and Hilary Swank) as well.

Last year’s supporting actress winner Jessica Lange moves to the Lead category now after the sophomore season of American Horror Story: Asylum. While she wasn’t able to win any precursors earlier this year, she hasn’t skipped a beat by picking up nominations from the Golden Globes, SAGs, and the BFCA Critics Choice for TV Awards for her performance as Sister Jude.

Sigourney Weaver is due for any award for anything, so I thought this would have been the avenue to reward her. To be fair, she commanded the short lived series Political Animals and served as the show’s core base, and in any weak year, this would have been a sure winner. Unfortunately for her, this year has been anything but weak in this category.

Elisabeth Moss picked up a second nod for this year, thanks to her lead performance in Jane Campion’s Top of the Lake. This is the perfect consolation to Moss if voters want to reward her with an Emmy already after years of losses for playing Peggy on Mad Men. After all, she already earned a BFCA CCTV in the same category last July. It’s also a different performance from her usual nominated ones, so it shows her range and versatility as an actress.

Then we have Laura Linney.Prior to her 2011 loss to Melissa McCarthy, Linney actually has a perfect Emmy track record reaping in three wins in the past with two victories in this category for 2002’s Wild Iris and 2008’s John Adams. If anything, she’s very competitive here seeing she’s 2/2 for her. On the flip side, her only loss (in Comedy Lead Actress) is for the same role she’s contending now. So odds are, it’s really up in the air when it comes to her actual chances. One thing I’m certain of is that if anybody can pull that upset, it’s definitely her.

Lastly, we have Dame Helen Mirren.Like Linney, Mirren is a force to be reckoned with in this category, as she’s the most rewarded actress here with four wins in the past in 1996, 1999, 2006, and 2007 and having 10 nominations here altogether. With that said, one can count her out for this year as she’s clearly a filler nominee for an HBO movie that stars two big movie stars. If anything, she’s the only one we can safely count here.

I really have no idea on who will win here, so you can ask me and I’ll probably change my answer every other day. However, I’m convinced that all voters will not be watching the whole seasons of American Horror Story: Asylum and Top of the Lake, but it’s between Jessica Lange and Elisabeth Moss. The only deciding factor I have is that Lange was a tour de force by the start of the season while Moss’ better episodes come in the latter part of the series. That plus the fact that voters are probably aware that Lange has won for that horror show and they will continue to vote for her. The only thing on Moss’ favor is if they find her overdue and want to give her a win already. I’d say Lange has the upperhand, but never disregard Elisabeth Moss or a possible upset from Laura Linney here.

Now that we’re done with the three acting categories here (Haven’t made up my mind yet on who’ll win Lead Actress), it’s time to move on with the main program award by discussing the Best Movie or Miniseries category. It’s almost a moot to even tackle each category comprehensively, as there seems to be a clear winner here already. The Steven Soderbergh directed film Behind the Candelabra is obviously winning the top prize. With great reviews, a historic Cannes competition participation, and overwhelming reception, this is one of the easier to predict wins for the night. The closest runner-up I can come up with is Sundance Channel’s Top of the Lake which also received unanimously great reviews and probably the little contender that could.

As for the others, despite American Horror Story: Asylum dominating the nominations with a whooping 17(!) nods and topping all the other programs this year, it will clearly follow the path of its predecessor last year safely winning an acting award (or two). The mere fact that it continues to dominate the noms yet it can’t break through the directing AND writing categories speaks volumes about its actual support in the Academy. Phil Spector is the typical HBO filler category year like what Hemingway & Gellhorn was last year and You Don’t Know Jack was the year before. It contains two movie stars in lead roles, but doesn’t really have anything else in its corner.

After History’s history breaking ratings with Hatfields & McCoys last year, they continue to beat their own record in terms of ratings for miniseries, with The Bible this year. Sadly for them, the nomination for their achievement is their main reward seeing that it only got in two other categories. As for Political Animals, you can use the same analogy to Phil Spector, only replace HBO with USA.

As I’ve mentioned, it will be an easy win for Behind the Candelabra, and may I say deservedly so? J

We’re halfway before the start of the festivals roll now into our Oscar predictions, and a lot of crazy things has happened already! Here’s how I see the state of the Oscar race for the six major categories for this month!